SPORTS BRIEFS

Agencies

Fri, Sep 13, 2013 - Page 18

SOCCER

Bale trains with Real

Gareth Bale trained with Real Madrid on Wednesday for the first time since his move from Tottenham Hotspur to the Spanish capital. Madrid published a photograph on their Web site of Bale being greeted by Cristiano Ronaldo at the club’s Valdebebas training ground after returning from international duty with Wales. Bale, 24, joined Madrid for an undisclosed fee that many reports say was higher than the world-record 94 million euros (US$125 million) paid by the club to Manchester United for Ronaldo in 2009. Bale played the final half-hour of Wales’ 3-0 defeat to Serbia in Cardiff in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. It was his first taste of action this season, but he may well make his debut for his new club in tomorrow’s trip to Villarreal in La Liga.

SOCCER

No Kerimov warrant: Interpol

Interpol on Wednesday said it has not issued an international arrest warrant for the billionaire owner of Russian soccer club Anzhi Makhachkala, Suleiman Kerimov, who is wanted by Belarus as part of a criminal probe into the potash sector that has already strained ties between Moscow and Minsk. Belarus last week opened a probe against Kerimov into suspected abuse of authority which has a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison. Minsk said then that Kerimov, who is based in Russia, should be placed under arrest and that it has issued an arrest warrant for his detention. Interpol said it received a request from Belarussian authorities on Sept. 2 for a Red Notice to be issued for Kerimov. It said that a week earlier, it had also received a separate “request from Belarus requesting that Red Notices be issued against four other individuals linked to the same case.” However, these “Red Notice requests are currently under review,” the statement added. The Belarussian charges relate to a probe that saw the chief executive of Russia’s main potash producer Uralkali, Vladislav Baumgertner, detained at Minsk airport and placed in custody at the end of last month. Belarussian investigators allege an illegal scheme by Baumgertner and other Uralkali managers to enrich themselves at a cost of US$100 million to Belarus.

SOCCER

Hunt out for four months

Crystal Palace signing Jack Hunt is unlikely to make his debut for the promoted Premier League club until next year after breaking his ankle in training. The 22-year-old defender, who signed from Huddersfield Town at the end of last month, will be out for up to four months, the BBC reported on Wednesday. “Absolutely devastated to have broken my ankle in training,” Hunt said on Twitter earlier this week. “Got to take the positives, clean break and no operation needed.” The rightback made 104 appearances for Championship side Huddersfield before making the switch to Selhurst Park.

TENNIS

Jovanovski into semis

Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia was the only seeded player to make it to the semi-finals of the Tashkent Open, beating Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) yesterday. The top-seeded Jovnovski won as the three other seeded players in the quarter-finals all lost. Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor of Spain defeated third-seeded Yvonne Meusburger of Austria 6-3, 6-0, Mandy Minella of Luxembourg beat fourth-seeded Nastassja Burnett of Italy 7-6 (7/4), 7-5, and Olga Govortsova of Belarus beat fifth-seeded Alexandra Cadantu of Romania 6-3, 6-2. In the semi-finals, Jonanovski will play Torro-Flor, while Govortsova will meet Minella.